Classroom
Management
Alison Rourke
What is Classroom
Management?
– It’s effective discipline
– It’s being prepared for class
– It’s motivating your students
– It’s providing a safe, comfortable
learning environment
– It’s building your students’ self
esteem
– It’s being creative and imaginative in
daily lessons
– And . . .
. . . It’s different for
EVERYONE!!
WHY?
– Teaching Styles
– Personality/Attitudes
– Student population
– Not all management strategies are
effective for every teacher
• Try different strategies to see if
they work for you
Why is Classroom
Management Important?
• Satisfaction and enjoyment in
teaching are dependent upon
leading students to cooperate
• Classroom management
issues are of highest concern
for beginning teachers
Principles for successful
classroom management
• Deal with disruptive behaviors but also
manage to minimize off-task, non-
disruptive behaviors
• Teach students to manage their own
behavior
• Students learn to be on-task and
engaged in the learning activities you
have planned for them
– It is more natural to be off-task than on
Techniques for Better
Classroom Control
• Focus attention on entire class
• Don’t talk over student chatter
• Silence can be effective
• Use softer voice so students really
have to listen to what you’re
saying
• Direct your instruction so that
students know what is going to
happen
Techniques for Better
Classroom Control
• Monitor groups of students to check
progress
• Move around the room so students
have to pay attention more readily
• Give students non-verbal cues
• Engage in low profile intervention of
disruptions
• Make sure classroom is comfortable
and safe
Techniques for Better
Classroom Control
• Over plan your
lessons to ensure
you fill the period
with learning
activities
• Come to class
prepared
• Show confidence in
your teaching
• Learn student
names as quickly as
possible
Transition vs. Allocated
Time
• Allocated time: the time periods you
intend for your students to be engaged
in learning activities
• Transition time: time periods that exist
between times allocated for learning
activities – Examples
• Getting students assembled and attentive
• Assigning reading and directing to begin
• Getting students’ attention away from reading
and preparing for class discussion
Transition vs. Allocated
Time
• The Goal:
– Increase the variety of learning activities but decrease transition time.
• Student engagement and on-task behaviors are dependent on how smoothly and efficiently teachers move from one learning activity to another
Withitness
• Withitness refers to a
teacher’s awareness of
what is going on in the
classroom
A teacher has “withitness” if:
• When discipline problems occur, the teacher consistently takes action to suppress the misbehavior of exactly those students who instigated the problem
• When two discipline problems arise concurrently, the teacher deals with the most serious first
• The teacher decisively handles instances of off-task behavior before the behaviors either get out of hand or are modeled by others
Withitness (continued)
• When handling misbehavior –
make sure all students learn what
is unacceptable about that
behavior
• Getting angry or stressed does not
reduce future misbehavior
• Deal with misbehavior without
disrupting the learning activity
Jones’ study of off-task
behaviors
• 99% of off-task behaviors take one of several forms
– Talking out of turn
– Clowning
– Daydreaming
– Moving about without permission
• Antisocial, dangerous behaviors make up a fraction of the time students spend off-task
Proximity and Body
Language
• Eye contact, facial expressions, gestures, physical proximity to students, and the way you carry yourself will communicate that you are in calm control of the class and mean to be taken seriously.
• Be free to roam
• Avoid turning
back to class
Cooperation through
communication
• Verbalize descriptions of behaviors and never value judgments about individuals
• Verbalize feelings but remain in control
• DO NOT USE SARCASM
• Do not place labels (good or bad)
• Do not get students hooked on praise – Praise the work and behavior – not the
students themselves
• Speak only to people when they are ready to listen
Classroom Rules For
Conduct
• Formalized statements that provide
students with general guidelines for the
types of behaviors that are required
and the types that are prohibited
• A few rules are easier to remember
than many rules
• Each rule in a small set of rules is more
important than each rule in a large set
of rules
Necessary classroom rules
of conduct
• Maximizes on-task behaviors and minimize off-task (esp. disruptive) behaviors
• Secures the safety and comfort of the learning environment
• Prevents the activities of the class from disturbing other classes
• Maintains acceptable standards of decorum among students, school personnel, and visitors to the school campus
Dealing with
misbehaviour
Functions of Behaviour
• Every behavior has a function
• Four primary reasons for disruptive
behaviour in the classroom
– Power
– Revenge
– Attention
– Want to be left alone (i.e., disinterest or
feelings of inadequacy)
Functions of Behaviour
• Many misbehaviors exhibited by students are responses to a behaviour exhibited by the teacher
• Do not tolerate undesirable behaviours no matter what the excuse
• Understanding why a person exhibits a behaviour is no reason to tolerate it
• Understanding the function of a behaviour will help in knowing how to deal with that behaviour
Dealing with off-task
behaviours
• Remain focused and calm; organize thoughts
• Either respond decisively or ignore it all together
• Distinguish between off-task behaviours and off-task behaviour patterns
• Control the time and place for dealing with off-task behaviour
• Provide students with dignified ways to terminate off-task behaviours
Dealing with off-task
behaviours
• Avoid playing detective
• Utilise alternative lesson plans
• Utilise the help of colleagues
• Utilise the help of guardians
• DO NOT USE PHYSICAL PUNISHMENT – A form of contrived punishment in which
physical pain or discomfort is intentionally inflicted upon an individual for the purpose of trying to get that individual to be sorry he or she displayed a particular behaviour
Attention Seeking
Behaviour
• Attention-seeking students prefer
being punished, admonished, or
criticised to being ignored
• Give attention to this student when
he or she is on-task and
cooperating
• “Catch them being good!” – and let
them know you caught them
Power Seeking
Behaviour
• Power-seeking students attempt to
provoke teachers into a struggle of
wills
• In most cases, the teacher should
direct attention to other members
of the class
Behaviour: Rambling -- wandering around
and off the subject. Using far-fetched
examples or analogies.
POSSIBLE RESPONSES:
Refocus attention by restating relevant
point.
Direct questions to group that is back on the
subject
Ask how topic relates to current topic being
discussed.
Use visual aids, begin to write on board,
turn on overhead projector.
Say: "Would you summarize your main point
please?" or "Are you asking...?"
Behaviour: Shyness or Silence -- lack of
participation
POSSIBLE RESPONSES:
o Change teaching strategies from group discussion to individual written exercises or a videotape
o Give strong positive reinforcement for any contribution.
o Involve by directly asking him/her a question.
o Make eye contact.
o Appoint to be small group leader.
Behaviour: Talkativeness -- knowing
everything, manipulation, chronic whining.
POSSIBLE RESPONSES:
o Acknowledge comments made.
o Give limited time to express viewpoint or
feelings, and then move on.
o Make eye contact with another participant and
move toward that person.
o Give the person individual attention during
breaks.
o Say: "That's an interesting point. Now let's see
what other other people think."
Behaviour: Sharpshooting -- trying to shoot
you down or trip you up.
POSSIBLE RESPONSES:
o Admit that you do not know the answer
and redirect the question the group or
the individual who asked it.
o Acknowledge that this is a joint learning
experience.
o Ignore the behaviour.
Behaviour: Heckling/Arguing -- disagreeing
with everything you say; making personal
attacks.
POSSIBLE RESPONSES:
Redirect question to group or
supportive individuals.
Recognize participant's feelings and
move one.
Acknowledge positive points.
Say: "I appreciate your comments, but
I'd like to hear from others," or "It
looks like we disagree."
Behaviour: Grandstanding -- getting caught
up in one's own agenda or thoughts to the
detriment of other learners.
POSSIBLE RESPONSES:
o Say: "You are entitled to your opinion,
belief or feelings, but now it's time we
moved on to the next subject," or
o "Can you restate that as a question?" or
o "We'd like to hear more about that if
there is time after the presentation."
Behaviour: Overt Hostility/Resistance --
angry, belligerent, combative behaviour.
POSSIBLE RESPONSES:
o Hostility can be a mask for fear. Reframe hostility as fear to depersonalize it.
o Respond to fear, not hostility.
o Remain calm and polite. Keep your temper in check.
o Don't disagree, but build on or around what has been said.
o Move closer to the hostile person, maintain eye contact.
o Always allow him or her a way to gracefully retreat from the confrontation.
Behaviour: Overt Hostility/Resistance -- angry,
belligerent, combative behavior (continued)
POSSIBLE RESPONSES:
Say: "You seem really angry. Does anyone else feel this way?" Solicit peer pressure.
Do not accept the premise or underlying assumption, if it is false or prejudicial, e.g., "If by "queer" you mean homosexual..."
Allow individual to solve the problem being addressed. He or she may not be able to offer solutions and will sometimes undermine his or her own position.
Ignore behavior.
Talk to him or her privately during a break.
As a last resort, privately ask the individual to leave class for the good of the group.
Behaviour: Griping -- maybe legitimate
complaining.
POSSIBLE RESPONSES:
o Point out that we can't change policy
here.
o Validate his/her point.
o Indicate you'll discuss the problem with
the participant privately.
o Indicate time pressure.
Behaviour: Side Conversations -- may be related to
subject or personal. Distracts group members and
you.
POSSIBLE RESPONSES:
Don't embarrass talkers.
Ask their opinion on topic being discussed.
Ask talkers if they would like to share their ideas.
Casually move toward those talking.
Make eye contact with them.
Standing near the talkers, ask a near-by participant a question so that the new discussion is near the talkers.
As a last resort, stop and wait.